It had been an entire week since Teresa Holmes had been found by Calista and Kit by the pond at the park. She remembered being scared and confused when she woke up in the hospital, but everyone had been quick to reassure the girl that she was safe and didn't need to be afraid. She calmed down after a while, got some food in her stomach, and even learned everyone's names.

But as the minutes ticked by, more and more questions stirred in her heart. She wanted to know everything there was to know about her life; her friends and family, how old she was, where she came from, what her hobbies were, all her likes and dislikes, if she had anyone special in her life. Lucky for her, the people with the sad eyes and reassuring smiles were more than happy to give her a history lesson about her life.

They answered every question she had and spent hours telling the girl stories about her life. Some of the stories made the girl smile and laugh, others made her sad, but she hung onto every word they said. Henry Mills even pulled out the storybook, showing Teresa illustrations of everyone's life, including her own, even if there weren't many pages with her name on it. But she had been eager to learn everything she could.

When she had opened up the storybook and began reading everything, Teresa felt like she wasn't even learning about her own life. The girl in the book shared the same name and the illustrations looked exactly like her, but it felt like she was reading about someone else's life. It didn't feel like her story or her life. But maybe that was just because she couldn't remember doing any of it.

Teresa was discharged from the hospital her second day there. She went back to the home she couldn't even remember, and each day that went by was harder than the one before it. She found it difficult to live under a roof with people she couldn't remember knowing. But most of all, she struggled with knowing that everyone was obviously keeping things away from her to spare her feelings.

When an entire week went by since she was found in the park, everyone finally seemed to notice how much Teresa was struggling to return to her old life. It was Doctor Whale and Snow White that suggested she visit the town's best psychologist so she could get everything off her chest and finally tell someone how she felt about the situation.

Now she was sitting on a sofa across from Doctor Archibald Hopper, dressed in a simple pair of jeans and a jacket to keep her warm from the autumn chill lingering in the air. She was a little uncomfortable, though, considering she couldn't remember knowing the doctor. How was she supposed to talk to someone about her feelings when she didn't even remember him? How did she know she could trust him to understand?

"How are you feeling today, Teresa?" Doctor Hopper asked, his brow creased with worry.

She cleared her throat before speaking. "I'm okay, I guess."

Doctor Hopper didn't seem to believe that. "Teresa, this is a safe place. You don't have to hide anything while you're here. We can talk about anything you want. Or we don't have to talk at all. The choice is entirely yours."

Silence. That is what he was met with. It caused Doctor Hopper to frown with concern. He understood that she was uncomfortable talking about what happened, especially with people she no longer remembered. But all he wanted to do was help. He wanted to make sure that she was handling everything okay, especially after Snow White told him how much she was struggling.

"You used to come here to see me, you know," Doctor Hopper said. He decided that maybe if he spoke more about her past, she would be more comfortable around him and finally open up about how she felt having no memory of who she was.

Her brow furrowed. "I did? Why?"

Doctor Hopper hesitated, silence filling the room as he tried to figure out what to say. When the girl had been found, everyone at the hospital thought it best they not tell her she had recently died and went on a little adventure in the Underworld. They thought it might be too much for her to handle after she lost all her memories. Now he regretted bringing that up, considering her resurrection is what brought the girl to his office in the first place.

"Uh," Doctor Hopper cleared his throat. "You lost someone that you loved. A man that was your father figure."

"Robin Hood," Teresa said. She remembered Henry telling her all about the man that had raised her in the Enchanted Forest. He was a famed archer that stole from the rich and gave to the poor, and he was part of a group that called themselves the Merry Men, who saved her life after her mother abandoned her when she was only six. He also had two children, Roland and Robin, but he died a few months ago.

"Yes," Doctor Hopper nodded, feeling a stab of guilt for having partially lied to the girl just now. "He was your father figure. You loved him very much, and when he died, it was hard for you. Especially after Roland and the Merry Men returned to the Enchanted Forest. You felt all you had left was the baby, Robin, left. But you don't, Teresa. You have so many people that care about you and want to help you get through this."

"Do they want to help me?" Teresa asked.

He was confused. "What do you mean?"

"I know that there is more about my life that people aren't telling me," she said. "Everyone is walking on eggshells around me. They're keeping things from me and I want to know why. It's my life and I deserve to know what happened."

"Teresa," Doctor Hopper began, but she immediately cut him off.

"So, I'm right?" Teresa asked. "People really are keeping things from me?"

He remained silent, deciding not to answer that question. He feared that he would slip up and tell her everything, and he wasn't sure how she would handle knowing what happened in the past. Not right now. Not after she had lost everything about herself.

Teresa scoffed. "You know, I might not remember things about my life, or about you, but I know a liar when I see one. You claim you want to help me, but you're just like everyone else. You're keeping things from me that I deserve to know, and it isn't fair. It's my life and I have the right to know what happened in it."

When he continued to sit there in silence, Teresa stood up and walked over to the door. But before she opened it, she turned back to look at him. "I don't want your help anymore, Doctor Hopper. Not if all you're going to do is lie to me." Then she opened the door and walked out, not giving him another chance to speak.

David Nolan was waiting in the hallway on a chair. Neal was in his lap, and he was bouncing the toddler on knee as they played with a stuffed dog. He had been the one to drive Teresa to her therapy session because Snow White was currently suffering the effects of their shared sleeping curse.

Apparently, Snow White and David shared one half of the same heart. Teresa didn't know the details about how that happened, but now their shared heart had been cursed. Only one of them could be awake at a time, so the couple had come up with a schedule that allowed for each of them to live one full day before awakening the other with a kiss. It was a good system, but they were struggling. Everyone, even Teresa, could see how much they missed each other.

"Hey," David greeted, standing from the chair with the toddler in his arms. "How'd it go?"

"It was fine," Teresa lied, deciding not to tell him what happened. She hadn't told anyone that she knew they were keeping things from her just yet. But she planned to soon. Now, however, wasn't the time. "You didn't have to wait here with Neal, you know. I could have walked back to the house."

"I didn't mind," David replied with a shrug. He grabbed the diaper back from the ground and threw it over his shoulder. "Come on, let's get outta here. It's almost lunch, and I don't know about you, but I'm starved."

Teresa smiled slightly. "I could eat."

Together, they left Doctor Hopper's office and made their way down to the car. David buckled Neal into his car seat and Teresa turned the radio on. The ride was silent, but it was a comfortable silence for once, as Teresa leaned her head against the window and watched the bright blue sky.

　
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A few hours had gone by since Teresa Holmes had her therapy session and ate lunch with David and Neal. Not long after, David had been called away by Emma and Killian for something she didn't know about, which left Teresa and Neal at the house alone. Though, not for long. Zelena and baby Robin had decided to pay them a visit about an hour after the man had left.

When the toddlers were put down for a nap, Teresa went outside to wait for Henry Mills. He wanted to hang out today and she wasn't opposed to the idea of spending more time with him. He was sweet and understanding, and he always had a story to share with her about the past. She enjoyed listening to his ramblings, though, for they always brought a smile to her face.

"When is Henry supposed to pick you up?" Zelena asked from where she sat on the porch swing, nursing a cup of tea in one hand while flipping through one of her sister's spell-books with the other. She, along with Alice, Emma and Regina, have been trying to find something that could put an end to the Evil Queen and Ravenna.

Teresa shrugged as she kicked a pine cone around in the front yard. "I'm not sure. He said he was going to get us some food from Granny's and then show me some of the places I used to go in the woods. Apparently, it was my favourite place in town." She bit her lip while staring down the road. "Maybe he had to pick up Violet along the way or something."

"Date in the woods, huh?" A faint smirk appeared on Zelena's face. "Sounds cozy."

Teresa's head snapped toward the porch, and her brow creased in confusion. "What?"

Realizing what she said, Zelena's eyes widened and she lifted her head from the grimoire to look at the teenage girl. "What?" she echoed, lost for words.

"You just said 'date'," Teresa said, her heart suddenly racing. "Why would it be a date? I thought he was my best friend? Is that why he's always acting weird around me? Because we were dating and now I can't remember anything? Is that one of the things you guys are keeping from me?"

Zelena's face softened. "We aren't keeping anything from you, Teresa."

"Yes, you are!" Teresa insisted, her voice much louder now as the frustration she's been keeping at bay finally revealed itself. "I may not remember my life, but I'm not an idiot, Zelena. You guys have been walking on eggshells around me ever since I woke up in the hospital. All of you are acting like I can't even handle knowing about my own life. I mean, what could I have done to make you guys think I'm better off not remembering? Was I a horrible person or something?" She stared pleadingly at the auburn-haired woman. "Just tell me. Please, Zelena. It's my life and I have a right to know."

"Teresa," Zelena began while shaking her head. But she was cut off when her nephew pulled up in his car. She stared at Teresa a moment longer, completely lost for words.

"Why can't you just tell me what it is?"

Zelena remained silent as she stared down at the teenage girl. She wanted more than anything to tell Teresa the truth about the prophecy and how she died and came back to life alongside Alice Lidell. But she had made a promise that she wouldn't say a word and she wasn't going to break that promise. Not when she finally had built up trusting relationships with everyone in town.

"Fine, don't tell me anything," Teresa said, jaw clenched in frustration. She swiveled on her heel and headed for Henry's car without saying another word to the woman.

Guilt stabbed at the woman's heart, and Zelena jumped up from the porch swing to call after the teenager. But Teresa Holmes didn't turn around. She just kept walking until she reached Henry's car. Zelena sat down on the porch swing again, a defeated sigh falling from her lips as she reached for her cup of tea.

Henry glanced at his aunt, before his concerned eyes drifted to Teresa. He knew something had just happened between them, and it was clearly still bothering her enough to avoid eye contact with him. "Is everything okay?"

"Yeah," Teresa replied. "I'm fine. It's nothing to worry about." She put on a smile while buckling her seatbelt and then changed the subject. "So, the woods. What exactly will we be seeing out there?"

The boy smiled teasingly as he gently stepped on the gas and pulled away from his grandparents' house. "Tress, bushes, pine cones, rocks, water. You know, the usual terrain."

Teresa playfully rolled her eyes. "That's not exactly what I meant."

"We're going to walk your hunting trails," Henry explained with an unwavering smile.

"Hunting trails?" Teresa furrowed her brows. "I used to hunt?"

While flipping on the turn signal to get back on the main road, Henry glanced at her briefly and nodded. "It was your favourite thing to do. You usually left really early in the morning to check your snares and would hunt for a couple hours."

"Was I any good?"

His heart filled with sadness. The fact she couldn't even remember one of her favourite things in the entire world made him want to scream. But he kept his composure, adjusted his grip on the steering wheel, and flashed her a faint smile instead. "You're the best archer I know, Teresa," he replied honestly.

"Was I really?" Teresa asked skeptically, arching a brow in his direction. "Or are you just saying that because I can't remember and you want to cheer me up?"

"No, no, I really meant what I said," Henry said. "You were raised by Robin Hood and the Merry Men, remember?"

"No," Teresa smirked. "I don't have any memories of my life, remember?"

Henry shook his head, unable to help the smile that spread across his face. "Just trust me on this one, okay? You're the best archer I know."

The girl nodded, taking his word for it, before turning to look out the window and watching as the trees passed by in a blur. "So, how come you know where my hunting grounds are? I thought that would be some kind of sacred secret among hunters or something? I mean, Violet told me you're my best friend, but did I tell you about it or did you used to come with me?"

Best friend.

The words stung deeply.

Yeah, Teresa was his best friend and she would always be his best friend, but she was so much more than that. So much more.

"Violet told you that?" His voice was just above a whisper, but she heard him loud and clear.

"Yeah, she told me when we were at the arcade yesterday," Teresa explained. "When you left to get us some cocoa, I kinda asked if you guys were dating because you seemed pretty close. But she said that we were just friends with each other, and that you had a girlfriend."

His eyes widened. "She said I have a girlfriend?"

Teresa was confused by his reaction. He looked almost disappointed and shocked? "Uh, yeah. Was she wrong or something? Because you seem . . ."

"It's complicated."

"How can it be complicated?"

"Because she . . ." Henry paused. He wanted more than anything to pull over on the side of the road, take her hand in his, and tell Teresa that she is the girl Violet told her about. But he didn't and he couldn't. He didn't want Teresa to feel bad about forgetting him when she had other things to worry about, like getting her memories back. "Never mind, it doesn't matter."

Teresa's brow furrowed. She wasn't quite sure what she had said to make Henry so upset. Was it because she talked about Violet? Did something happen between them? Or was it because she brought up his girlfriend, who he was clearly having relationship problems with? Either way, she felt guilty for making him upset. She may not remember her life or the people in it, but she knew that wasn't what a best friend was supposed to do.

"Sorry," Teresa apologized. "I didn't mean to upset you or anything. I just . . . well, I was curious about our relationship. You've just been so supportive since I got out of the hospital that I wanted to know what we were, I guess. And then Violet told me you were my best friend and I just . . . it felt nice knowing I had a best friend that I can count on right now."

"It's okay," Henry assured. "I'm not mad at you, Teresa. I was just hoping to tell you that I was your best friend myself. You know, when the time was right." There was a short pause filled with silence. "Anyway, to answer your question, I used to go hunting with you. But I don't go so much anymore. Honestly, I don't think you like having me around when you're hunting."

"Why do you say that?" Teresa asked. "I mean, you're supposed to be my best friend, right? Why wouldn't I want you around?"

"You always yell at me for being too loud."

"Loud?"

"Apparently, I move louder than a giant."

"Do you?"

"Absolutely not."

"So that's a yes?" Teresa laughed, which caused him to shake his head in amusement. "Well, if I am as good as you say, perhaps you should start taking my advice and learn to move quieter. Maybe then I won't get so annoyed by you."

"I'll remember that next time," Henry said before he could even stop himself.

The car grew silent, neither of them knowing what to say after that. Neither of them knew when or even if Teresa was going to get her memories back, so the probability of her ever hunting again and Henry joining her on said hunt was slight. A mere dream at this point.

"Sorry," he apologized a moment later.

"It's okay," Teresa replied quietly, before the car fell silent once more.

Five minutes later, Henry pulled over on the side of the road and parked. He shoved the keys inside his jacket pocket, before reaching into the back seat for the brown paper bag, which contained the grilled cheese sandwiches he ordered from Granny's Diner while Teresa stepped out of the car and into the crisp autumn air.

"It's nice out here," Teresa commented. She looked at Henry as he joined her side. He not only had their lunch, but the bow and quiver arrows she recognized from her bedroom as well. "What are you doing with those?"

Henry shrugged. "I thought maybe we could do some target practice while we were out here."

"Oh, Henry, I don't know," Teresa hesitated. "I don't even remember how to hold a bow, let alone shoot with one." Then she saw the hopeful gleam in his brown eyes and realized the real reason why he had brought the bow and quiver with them into the woods today. He was hoping it would trigger some memories. "Okay," she sighed. "I suppose it wouldn't hurt."

A grin spread across his face, and Henry stepped forward, placing the quiver and bow over her head and positioning them across her back. "You'll love it, promise. Knowing you, it'll be like riding a bike."

"I don't know how to ride a bike."

Henry sighed. "Well, at least you haven't lost your sarcasm."

They walked through the woods for a little while, following her supposed hunting trails, until they came upon a small clearing that had an archery target nailed to a tree. There were so many holes in the target that it was hard to believe it hadn't blown away in a gentle breeze yet.

Henry laid out a small blanket on the ground and put their food down on top, before he motioned for Teresa to follow him. "Come on. Stand over here."

She walked over to where he was standing and positioned herself to be lined up with the archery target. "Okay. Now what?"

"So, first, you'll want to have your feet like this," Henry explained, tapping her boots with his sneakers to get her feet in the correct position, before grabbing her sides and doing the same with her body. "And then you'll want to turn so you're facing this way."

"Uh, okay," Teresa mumbled, trying her best to do everything that he was saying.

"Okay, now, lift the bow," Henry instructed.

Teresa reached over her shoulder and pulled out an arrow from the quiver. She then lifted the bow, and Henry helped her put the arrow in place before beginning to adjust her stance once more by moving her elbows around and fixing her grip.

"Henry, I don't know about this," Teresa said, once he had finally gotten her into the correct position. "This doesn't feel right."

"You'll do great," Henry told her. "Trust me. Now, pull back the bowstring and aim where you want the arrow to go."

Teresa did as he instructed and pulled the bowstring back. That part was easy, she supposed, but aiming was a whole other story. She swore it took her almost two full minutes to finally pick a spot to aim at. She took a deep breath and then let the arrow fly.

They watched with anticipation as the arrow soared through the air, but it was nowhere near the target. It flew past the tree and the target pinned to it, bouncing off another tree far behind and falling to the ground. Teresa frowned and lowered the bow. For a moment, she had hoped that Henry would be right about her. That she would be able to shoot the bow perfectly. But it seemed she had forgotten how to do that as well.

"It's okay," Henry said with a reassuring smile when he noticed the expression on her face. "Try again."

They stood there for another twenty minutes, and every time Teresa shot an arrow she would miss again and again and again. She hadn't gotten a single one relatively close to the target or even the tree it was pinned to. Henry even had her move a little closer at one point, but not even that seemed to work.

"Hey, don't worry," Henry said as he walked over to retrieve the arrows, remaining hopeful even after he had watched the great Teresa Holmes miss thirty consecutive times. But he believed that there was still a part of her that knew how to shoot an arrow and he was going to help her no matter how long it took. "It's going to take some time. We'll just have to be patient."

"I don't think I want to do this, Henry."

Henry stopped picking up the arrows from the ground and turned around to look at her, his smile fading. "What?"

"Ever since I left the hospital, everyone has been trying to get the old Teresa back," she said. "But she's gone, Henry, and I don't know if she is ever going to come back." She walked over and thrust the bow and arrows into his arms. "So please, just stop trying to make me be like her. Because I'm not. I don't even know who I am anymore. That's something I have to find out on my own now."

"Why are you giving up so easily?" Henry asked.

"I'm not giving up," Teresa defended. "I'm just tired of everyone trying to make me be someone that I'm not anymore. The person you all knew is gone. And I'm sorry that you lost her, but you can't force her to come back. That's not how these things work. This is who I am now, and you're just going to have to accept that and stop pushing me to do things that I don't want to do. You're supposed to be my best friend, Henry, can't you just accept that this is how things are now?"

Henry shook his head. "I can't just pretend that nothing ever happened. You had everything taken away from you and I wasn't there to stop it from happening. It's my fault. I just want to make things right. I want to help you remember."

"But you can't, Henry!" Teresa exclaimed. "Don't you get that? There's nothing that you do other than be there for me. You heard what Doctor Whale said at the hospital. My memories may never come back and I have to ease back into my life one step at a time. But it's only been a week and everyone is pushing me to do things that the old Teresa used to do, and it's only making me more stressed out!"

Several seconds went by and they were all filled with a suffocating silence. Teresa stepped away, running her hands through her platinum hair in exasperation while Henry looked at her with sad eyes and a broken heart. All he wanted to do was help her remember things that she used to do, but he hadn't even realized the stress it was causing her until now.

"I'm sorry," Henry apologized, capturing her attention, as she turned to look at him again. "I didn't realize you felt that way, I was just trying to help. I thought maybe coming out here to where you used to hunt and shooting some arrows would trigger some memories and you might remember something. I thought . . . I thought you might remember something about me."

Teresa's face softened. "I know that you were just trying to help me, Henry, and I really appreciate that. And I'm sorry you lost your best friend. She seemed like an amazing person, and it sucks I don't remember, but maybe we don't have to bring her back? Maybe we can just start over? Because I would like to be your best friend again without it being super awkward."

Henry didn't want that. Not even in the slightest. All he wanted was for her memories to come back. For his soulmate to remember every moment of her life. He didn't want to sit around and wait for them to build up the relationship they had before. But if that's what she wanted to do, then he wasn't going to take the chance of losing her again.

"Okay," he said, agreeing to everything she had said. "I'll stop trying to bring the old Teresa back and I'll help you find the new you. We can forget about the hunting and the bow and can just do whatever you wanna do. We can go to the arcade, I can take you home, it doesn't matter."

"You promise?" Teresa asked.

"I promise," Henry said, no matter how much it pained him to say those two words. His heart cracked under the pressure of them.

Teresa smiled and crossed the clearing, throwing her arms around him. She hugged him tight and thanked him for seeing things from her perspective, and while he did hug her back, Henry felt his heart falling to pieces.

　
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They had spent another hour in the woods, only instead of shooting hours, they talked about random things, like comic books and video games and the weather while eating their grilled cheese sandwiches. And when they had finished, they packed up everything and headed back to the car so Henry could drop her off at home.

Along the way, Teresa found herself smiling as she looked out the car window. She was happy that he had agreed to let her memories come back on their own and just live in the moment. She didn't feel as stressed out anymore now that the bow was out of her hands. But there was still something that bothered her, and she couldn't help but wonder if it was true or not.

"Can I ask you something?" Teresa asked suddenly, turning away from the window to look at him.

Henry nodded in response, eyes fixated on the road as he drove back into town.

"Before, when you asked what happened between me and your aunt, I lied to you," Teresa revealed, and his brow furrowed. "We argued about something and I'm hoping that maybe you can clear it up for me?"

"What do you want to know?" Henry asked.

"I told her that you were picking up food and then going to take me to the woods, and she made this comment that really confused me," Teresa explained. "And now I just can't seem to get it outta my head."

"What did she say?"

"She said that you were going to take me on a date in the woods," Teresa said awkwardly, and she noticed that he stiffened up and his eyes grew a little. "I know that you have all been keeping a lot of things from me, and given how awkward everyone is when I'm around you and how much you want to be around me, I just thought she might have been right."

Henry remained silent. His heart was racing and his palms were sweating. He adjusted his grip on the steering wheel and swallowed, trying his best to look everywhere but her.

"Is what Zelena said true about us?" Teresa asked. "Were we really dating and you just didn't want to tell me because I couldn't remember you?"

He hesitated. "Yes."

Teresa felt her mouth go dry, and her heart started racing. "And the other things that you're all keeping from me? What are they?"

"Teresa⎯⎯"

"No, I want to know, Henry," she said, the tone of her voice both soft and demanding all at once. "If you're really my boyfriend, if you really care about me, then why can't you just tell me? Don't you think that I deserve to know about my own life?"

"I can't tell you," Henry said, heart tightening within his chest. "If I told you, it would only make things worse, because you won't remember the bond we share."

"Our relationship is really that hard to explain?" Teresa questioned, finding that incredibly hard to believe. What was so difficult about explaining a romantic relationship? She learned everything about Snow White and David in less than two hours, and Emma and Killian in even less time than that.

"Explaining is one thing, but feeling it is another," Henry elaborated. "I'm not going to torture you with the details when you can't even feel our bond anymore."

Teresa shook her head, nostrils flaring. She just wanted someone to tell her the truth for once, and it seemed that not even her boyfriend slash best friend could do that. "Stop the car."

"What?"

"Stop the car!" Teresa shouted.

"What? No⎯⎯"

"I don't want to be in the car anymore," Teresa said. "Please let me out, Henry."

"Teresa⎯⎯"

She turned and opened the door, which caused him to quickly pull over to the side of the road outside the post office. She climbed out of the car and slammed the door before starting to make her way home. Henry got out after her and called her name, but she kept walking, only stopping when he caught up and grabbed her wrist.

"Teresa, will you just stop!" Henry exclaimed, turning her around. She pulled her hand away, causing him to sigh. "Look, I'm sorry. I want to tell you everything, but I can't. You just have to trust me that there are some things you're better off not knowing right now."

"You know, when I woke up in the hospital and you started telling me stories about my life, I honestly felt relieved. I thought maybe you were going to be the one person I could rely on after what happened, but I was wrong," Teresa said, voice cracking.

Henry shook his head, and he opened his mouth to say something, but she beat him to it.

"I have enjoyed every moment with you since I woke up," Teresa went on. "You have made me smile and laugh and are the one person that hasn't left my side. But now I realize all you've done is lie to my face over and over again by keeping the truth from me."

"Teresa, please⎯⎯"

"I'm sorry, Henry," she said, stepping away. "But I just need to be alone right now. Please respect that and don't follow me."

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a/n: I am so sorry that it took basically a year to publish this chapter! But honestly, life got in the way and I lost all my inspiration, but thankfully I have the motivation to write again. Hopefully, the next chapter won't take me as long! Because I really want to have this book finish by autumn.

Also, yes, I know, Teresa got a little grouchy and broke Henry's poor heart in this chapter. But can you really blame her? Everyone is lying to her face (about the prophecy and her death/resurrection) and she has this huge weight on her shoulders, so she finally just snapped. Don't worry, though, things are gonna start looking up pretty soon!